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I know many Production Directors that venomously disagree with this phrase however Tortoise & Hare still holds true.

It’s a fact the majority of lost production comes from downtime not slow running.

Yes increasing press speed by 10% will reduce the runtime by 10% however it does NOT reduce the make ready by 10% so downtime is still a constant. The shorter the runs the more make readies actually increasing the lost running time on everything other than ZMR machines.

Reducing all downtime is critical if you want to increase the overall pressrooms performance.

As a pressman there are many tasks that need to be completed form to form these need to be reduced to a minimum or automated if possible.

All efforts need to be directed towards getting the press running again.

If make readies take 10mins & running time is 10mins the press will be stopped 50% of the time Increasing run speed 10% could save 1min / form = 40mins more run time / 24hrs if the additional speed does not impact press performance or waste which it normally does (Longer Makereadies, web breaks, paper jams etc.)

However reducing the make ready by 1 min will have no impact on already established press performance or crew comfort levels therefore translating into guaranteed additional throughput.

This is obviously a picture perfect day, in the real world very few machines run trouble free 24/7 so identifying & eliminating non scheduled downtime is imperative.

As a pressman you need to understand the importance of having the machine running. Organize your crew to minimize make ready, size change, & web break times.

As a manager schedule the workflow to minimize changeovers & reduce or eliminate on press paperwork. Ensure job bags, paper & plates are available in a timely manner.

Waiting for paper or plates on the press report is a direct reflection of your company’s professionalism.